Farm Report: July 2004
by Jordan Rainwater

Planting, planting, and more planting. There is a vitalizing energy amongst the crew this time of year as we try to make the most of this window of opportunity. Tomato, eggplant, brassica and pepper transplants are spreading their roots in the comfort of their new home, while direct seeded crops such as melons, cucumbers, and squash are springing up from the earth. We just hilled the potatoes for the second and final time, as they are just starting to flower and enter the tuber-set phase. The head lettuces are growing happily under the shelter of shade cloth, despite the mid-90 degree weather we have been experiencing for several weeks. Our parsnip plants, being grown out for seed, have reached an impressive five feet in height, as six-foot tall Joe Martinez will attest. June is the time of year that the hardneck garlic varieties form their tasty, curling scapes just in time to bridge the gap between the dwindling winter supply and the new summer crop. Harvest them to force the plants to put more energy into bulb formation, then cook them up with unabashed indulgence!

The crops inside the pollination tents are flourishing. Pole beans are already climbing the trellises, carrot plants are just beginning to flower, and the chile plants are growing strong. We will begin releasing Blue Bottle flies inside each one in about three weeks to ensure that the flowers are pollinated. Plants have a huge advantage inside the tents, being isolated from the numerous insect pests, wind, and the intense UV rays that the outdoor crops contend with. Floating row cover envelops much of the rest of the farm this time of year, protecting brassicas from cabbage looper moths (Trichoplusia ni) and imported cabbageworm butterflies (Artogeia rapae); tomato plants from leaf hoppers (Family Cicadellidae) and tomato hornworm moths (Manduca quinquemaculata); and winter and summer squash from squash vine borer moths (Melittia cucurbitae) and squash bugs (Anasa tristis). We affectionately call it the Remay Farm at present.

Each summer the Seeds of Change Research Farm is graced with the presence of at least one enthusiastic, hard-working apprentice. This year we have three! We are so happy to have with us Kelle Carter, Shannon Post, and Eric Ogden from Georgia, Maine, and Florida, respectively, for the 2004 growing season. Our apprentices always infuse the rest of us with a renewed sense of curiosity and joy in what we do. In addition to the day-to-day fieldwork, Kelle, Shannon, and Eric will be assisting us in improving our current on-farm composting system as a special project.

If you plan on being in New Mexico on the weekends of August 28th or September 12th, consider making a trip out to the Seeds of Change Research Farm for one of our annual public farm tours. It's always a fun time for everyone. Simply call our farm manager, Erica Renaud, at (505) 852-9040 or email her at erica.renaud@effem.com to reserve a place (or places!) on either weekend.

Greetings from the farm,
Jordan Rainwater, Research Associate
and the entire crew at the Seeds of Change Research Farm

Photo captions: (top) Jordan Rainwater counting carrot plants in the pollination isolation tent. (middle) "The remay farm". (bottom) Joe Martinez (left) with the interns and staff planting corn in the flood fields.